ainda hoje se mantém em aberto a questão de uma possível cópia de "hotel california", a célebre canção dos eagles, 
em relação a este original, gravado uns bons oito anos antes. é óbvio que a sequência de acordes (a famosa "chord progression", 
tão invocada em casos de plágio) apresenta semelhanças, mas a melodia é inegavelmente distinta. de qualquer modo, 
polémicas à parte, recordo aqui "we used to know", a canção que me fez gostar de ian anderson e dos jethro tull.

[ o poema de ontem era um prelúdio para a banda sonora de hoje ]

i. esta canção apareceu no primeiro álbum de waits, há mais de quarenta anos. bem sei que ele canta sobre um velho chevrolet de 1955, mas hoje apetece-me pensar que está a cantar sobre mim. yep, i’m fifty-five today... mas com uma estrada aberta pela frente.

ii. olho para trás pelo retrovisor e nesse momento sei (aliás, sempre o soube): a vida por cumprir é como esta estrada – apenas uma canção comprida.

iii. entretanto anoiteceu: ao volante (não de um chevrolet, não cada vez mais perto de sintra, mas cada vez menos perto de mim) torna-se claro que a estrada é um lugar solitário – até se começar a percorrê-la…

hoje é dia de fábulas: 
esta, quase com quarenta anos de idade mas ainda e sempre irresistível, é a da lebre que perdeu os óculos 
e não foi lá muito bem aconselhada pelos seus amigos mocho, salamandra, abelha e canguru. 
vá, vamos lá, era uma vez... 


 (...algo de maravilhoso está a acontecer...)


This is the story of the hare who lost his spectacles. 
Owl loved to rest quietly whilst no one was watching. sitting on a 
Fence one day, he was surprised when suddenly a kangaroo ran close 
By. Now this may not seem strange, but when owl overheard kangaroo whisper 
To no one in particular, "the hare has lost his spectacles," well, he 
Began to wonder. Presently, the moon appeared from behind a cloud and there, lying on 
The grass was hare. In the stream that flowed by the grass -- a Newt. 
And sitting astride a twig of a bush -- a bee. 
Ostensibly motionless, the hare was trembling with excitement, for 
Without his spectacles he was completely helpless. where were his 
Spectacles? could someone have stolen them? had he mislaid them? what 
Was he to do? Bee wanted to help, and thinking he had the answer began: "you 
Probably ate them thinking they were a carrot." "no!" interrupted owl, 
Who was wise. "i have good eye-sight, insight, 
And foresight. how could an intelligent hare make such a silly 
Mistake?" but all this time, owl had been sitting on the fence, 
Scowling! Kangaroo were hopping mad at this sort of talk. she thought herself 
Far superior in intelligence to the others. she was their leader; 
Their guru. she had the answer: "hare, you must go in search of the 
Optician." But then she realized that hare was completely helpless without his 
Spectacles. and so, kangaroo loudly proclaimed, "i can't send hare in 
Search of anything!" "you can guru, you can!" shouted newt. "you can send him with owl." 
But owl had gone to sleep. newt knew too much to be stopped by so 
Small a problem -- "you can take him in your pouch." but alas, hare 
Was much too big to fit into kangaroo's pouch. 
All this time, it had been quite plain to hare that the others knew 
Nothing about spectacles. 
As for all their tempting ideas, well hare didn't care. 
The lost spectacles were his own affair. 
And after all, hare did have a spare a-pair. A-pair.